Hearty White Bean Vegetable Soup

When it’s cold outside, I love a big bowl for hearty vegetable soup for dinner. Soup recipes are easy to pull together, make a ton, and are a very comforting way to end the day. Plus, and this is a big plus, it’s something everyone in my family seems to enjoy. It’s another way I can fill my kids’ bellies with veggies.

This hearty vegetable soup is particularly easy to throw together. Chances are you probably already have all or most of the ingredients in your fridge or pantry already. But if you don’t there’s a handy shopping list at the bottom of this post for your convenience.

As with most soups, this one is easy to make your own. By that I mean that there is a lot of room for you to experiment and turn it into a soup full of your favorite veggies. If you aren’t a big fan of butternut, no biggie. Leave it out and use a different kind of squash or veggie. The kale is interchangeable with spinach, chard or even beet greens. We lovingly refer to this soup as “clean out the fridge” soup.

Bonus if you have leftovers from Sunday dinner you can turn those ingredients into a great soup to start the week. This soup is great on its own, ladled over hot rice or quinoa or with a big slice of homemade bread or a grilled cheese sandwich on the side.

Instructions

Heat oil in a large soup pot. Add the onion and cook, stirring often, until the onions starts to soften. Add the carrots, celery, and leeks. Continue cooking, stirring often, for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 30 seconds, being careful not to let it burn.

Next add the tomato paste and stir well. Let cook for 30 seconds then add beans, diced tomatoes, broth, thyme, and butternut squash. Add salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste. (It might not need much salt if the broth is salted.) Bring to a simmer and let cook for about 15-20 minutes, or until the squash is tender.

Add the chopped kale and let cook for another 5-10 minutes. Taste and add more salt and pepper, if needed.

Ladle into bowls and serve hot with warm rolls or bread on the side.

5 DAY MEAL PLAN

MONDAY

TUESDAY

Slow cooker meals are great to incorporate into weekly menu plans because you can put everything into the cooker and come back at dinner time. This roast is very flavorful. The sauce is incredible over mashed potatoes. Here it’s served up with green beans too.

WEDNESDAY

You’ll have some leftover butternut squash from Monday’s soup, what better way to use it up than in a creamy homemade macaroni and cheese dish? Fresh rosemary and toasted whole wheat breadcrumbs make this recipe extra special. Be sure to use aged cheddar for a really flavorful macaroni.

FRIDAY

Friday night is almost always pizza night at our house. Using homemade naan as the pizza crust makes these extra easy and fast to make. I might also add some of the leftover balsamic pork on these too.

About Lindsey Johnson

Lindsey is a recipe developer, writer, and photographer based in the Pacific Northwest. She and her husband are the parents of three kids and two fur babies. Lindsey enjoys gardening and tending to her vast array of indoor plants. Find her at Cafe Johnsonia.

I made this tonight for supper in the slow cooker and we’re overall quite pleased with it! (We cooked it 6 hours on high with dry beans and it was just right.) It does need a bit more flavour for us, though, so next time I’ll add a bit more fresh herbs–maybe some of the oregano and/or basil that we grow on our windowsill. Thanks for the great recipe! :)

Made this yesterday for my meal prep lunches for the week and I love it! It’s great with a little whole grain crisp bread and it freezes very nice. Quite low calorie, too and I made it into 5 servings.

This is a great recipe! I made it post-Thanksgiving when no one wanted another bite of turkey or mashed potatoes and gravy. It’s hearty and filling without being a creamy, fattening soup. My family loved it! Thanks for posting!

I’ve made this recipe a few times now tweaking it a little bit each time based on what I had in my fridge. By far the best combination included the butternut squash and a dark green (I’ve used both collard greens and Swiss chard). I also cut the canned tomatoes in half which made it less acidic. I added some different seasonings, like paprika, dried thyme instead of fresh, garlic powder, red pepper flakes and dried basil. Overall this is an incredibly flavorful, filling and plain delicious soup!! Thank you for sharing, it’s now part of my repertoire.